Science Utah Lecture Series: Hidden in the Heavens
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Science Utah Lecture Series
Hidden in the Heavens: How the Kepler Mission’s Quest for New Planets Changed How We View Our Own
NASA's Kepler mission was designed to measure the number of Earth-like planets with Earth-like orbits in the galaxy. In four short years it found thousands of planets, most of which are unlike anything in the solar system. These systems challenge our understanding of the formation and dynamical evolution of planetary systems, as well as our understanding of the origins of the solar system. We will see the history of this mission, get an insider's account of the experiences of the science team, and explore the many scientific breakthroughs that the mission enabled.
Jason Steffen is an Associate Professor of Physics at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His work is primarily on the properties, formation, and dynamical evolution of planets and planetary systems. He was a long-time member of the science team for NASA’s Kepler mission, where he contributed to the discovery and characterization of thousands of planets and planetary systems. Dr. Steffen is the author of the book “Hidden in the Heavens,” available from Princeton University Press. Prior to joining UNLV, he was research faculty at Northwestern University and the Brinson Postdoctoral Fellow at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory near Chicago, Illinois.
Dr. Steffen received his PhD and MS in Physics at the University of Washington, Seattle, and his Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and Physics from Weber State University in Utah.
Website: www.jasonhsteffen.com
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